If You're Going to Buy a Helmet In Case of Bear Attacks, At Least Make It A Motorcycle Helmet

Japan's bear problem is weird.

Photo by: TOMS

By: Jonathon Klein

Jul 30, at 7:34am ET

Add RideApart as a preferred source in Google

Comment

I spend a lot of time in bear country, and while there are those who advocate for bear spray or a black-plastic trash bag, I bring firepower to that fight. Bears have teeth and claws and about a hundred pounds on me, and no amount of mace or flimsy plastic is gonna make me feel better compared to the stopping power of 17 rounds of hollowpoints. And it's how a lot of my ilk travel these days, as human encroachment into traditional bear ecosystems, along with a lot of people feeding them, has made bear encounters more frequent and more dangerous.

Both for the bears and the humans.

Yet, I'm not sure a "bear helmet" would really do much if you encounter a bear in the wild, as is now apparently the trend in Japan. In fact, I truly doubt it'd do anything to keep you safe, as the helmet is made of one part bicycle helmet, and one part plastic face shield. It's just...not up to the task apart from keeping you from sneezing on the salad. That's a salad bar joke, as this damn thing looks exactly like that. But if you were going to use a helmet to keep your noggin safe from bears, at least make it of the moto variety. Then you'd have some crash protection and carbon between you and the bear's claws, teeth, and angriness.

And the helmet is from one of the most unexpected places around: The tuner world.

Our friends over at Carscoops first picked up on the trend, as Japan is currently dealing with a black bear crisis. Attacks are on the rise, and the government has implemented a number of new restrictions to people moving through bear territory, as well as the removal and hunting of problem bears—the latter of which is somewhat of a problem due to the hunters' inexperience in the practice, as hunting regulations were changed in the 1980s due to overharvesting.

Better conservation practices were put in place, but they were almost too limiting, as populations surged, while food decreased, and human interactions fell. That matters, as bears become both accustomed to humans, which can lead to problems, or unknowing of humans, which can also lead to issues. That's led to the pretty drastic uptick in encounters and attacks. Last year alone, 13 people died, and over 200 attacks have been documented.

Which brings us to the helmet.

Here's the wildest thing about the anti-bear helmet. It's made by Toms. If you're unaware of Toms, think back to the late '90s and early aughts, and think of Playstation, Grand Turismo, and the Toyota Supra. Remember the Toms Supra? Yeah, Toms is the aftermarket specialist that went racing and builds some of the best parts around. And for some reason, the company decided to get into the bear protection business. But unlike the company's other products, I'm sorry to say, these don't meet muster of the brand's name cachet.

What do you think?

View

Comments

See, what you have here is a bicycle helmet that weighs just 1.2 pounds and is "bicycle certified," whatever that means. Additionally, a polycarbonate shield was added to basically protect your face from the deadly maw of a bear. Yet, I doubt either the main crash structure or the shield would do much of anything to halt a bear attack. If anything, due to much of it still being open, it's basically a spoon for the bear with your face and head being its soup. It's a ramen spoon!

The helmet also costs a pretty substantial $90 converted from yen, which is, honestly, too much for what it is. So what do you do? Easy, get guns. OK, that's not easy in Japan, but bear spray is legal, and if you absolutely feel the need for a bear protection helmet, buy a motorcycle helmet. It's built to withstand far more, it's full-face, and that shield ain't gonna crack under a bear. Plus, you then have a motorcycle helmet and you can get a motorcycle to take you into bear country. Like I do!